1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, generally, to a head restraint assembly, and more specifically to a head restraint assembly having a contoured and offset post for a vehicle seat assembly.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional vehicle seat designs of the type commonly found in the related art typically include a seatback assembly, a lower seat assembly, recliner mechanism, manual or power adjustment mechanism for adjusting a number of positions of either the seatback or lower seat assemblies, as well as a number of safety features including occupant restraint devices such as seatbelts.
In the context of vehicle seating design, there is an ongoing effort to provide safety mechanisms that reduce the chance of injury to the passenger's head and neck region. For instance, in the event of a rear end vehicular collision, the occupant's torso is forced against the seatback, and the occupant's neck and head region moves relative to the torso, causing a relative angular displacement between the chest and neck and head region of the occupant. Depending on the force of the rear end collision, this angular displacement can be quickly closed by movement of the neck and head region of the passenger toward the head restraint in an event commonly known as “whiplash.” Various head restraint assemblies have been included in vehicle seats to reduce whiplash.
One of the most common ways to reduce whiplash is to minimize the distance between the back of the passenger's head and neck region and the head restraint, thereby reducing the movement of the passenger's head and neck region relative to the torso. The distance between the passenger's head and the head restraint is commonly known as “backset” and the movement of the passenger's head relative to the torso is commonly known as “head displacement.” In an effort to minimize backset and reduce head displacement vehicle seats often include an adjustable head restraint.
One type of adjustable head restraint assembly employed within vehicle seats can be adjusted vertically, relative to the seat back. Typically, this type of head restraint includes a post, which often resembles an inverted U, and a foam body surrounding a portion of the post. However, this type of head restraint is only capable of vertical movement typically along the same plane as the seat back, which may actually increase the backset when the seat back is even slightly reclined. Additionally, given the typical inverted U-shape of a standard post, the cross member may do little to stop head displacement. For example, during a rear end vehicular collision, the passenger's head may actually move under the cross member, thereby increasing head displacement and the severity of whiplash.
Another type of head restraint employed with vehicle seats is commonly referred to as a “4-way” head restraint. 4-way head restraints provide not only vertical movement as described above, but also tilt or fore/aft movement relative to the passenger's head and neck region in an effort to minimize backset and reduce head displacement. However, this type of head restraint requires complex mechanisms to provide the 4-way movement and is typically found only in higher end vehicles. Additionally, some 4-way head restraints employ the standard inverted U-shape post, which includes certain disadvantages with respect to reducing head displacement in the event of a rear end vehicular collision as discussed above.
Although the adjustable head restraints of the type generally known in the related art have worked well for their intended purposes certain disadvantages remain. Specifically, there remains a need for a head restraint assembly that reduces head displacement to during a vehicular collision. Furthermore, there remains a need for a head restraint assembly that maintains a substantially constant backset while providing vertical adjustment relative to the seat back. Further still, there remains a need for a head restraint assembly that minimizes backset and head displacement to reduce the likelihood of whiplash during a rear end vehicular collision. Further still, there remains a need for a head restraint assembly that minimizes backset and reduces head displacement that is also cost-effective to manufacture, easy to install, and suitable for use within all vehicle models.